The Journal of Public Health and Health Services (JPHHS) employs a double-blind peer review process, in which the identities of authors and reviewers are not disclosed to each other throughout the review process. This process is intended to maintain objectivity, independence, and integrity in scholarly evaluation.

All submitted manuscripts first undergo an initial screening by the editor to assess their compliance with the journal's focus and scope, author guidelines, manuscript completeness, basic scientific quality, publication ethics, and originality. Manuscripts that do not meet the requirements or fall outside the journal's focus and scope may be rejected at this stage (desk rejection).

Manuscripts that pass the initial screening are reviewed by at least two reviewers with relevant expertise in the subject area of the manuscript. Reviewers evaluate manuscripts based on:

• originality and scientific contribution;
• clarity of the research objective;
• appropriateness and rigor of the research methodology;
• quality of data analysis;
• presentation and interpretation of results;
• quality of the discussion;
• consistency between the conclusions and research findings;
• quality and relevance of references;
• and research and publication ethics.

Based on the reviewers' recommendations, the editor may make one of the following decisions:

1. Accept without revision;
2. Minor Revision;
3. Major Revision; or
4. Reject.

Authors are required to respond to reviewers' comments and revise their manuscripts in accordance with the recommendations provided. A manuscript may undergo more than one round of peer review when the editor considers further evaluation and revision necessary.

The final decision regarding acceptance or rejection is made by the Editor-in-Chief or a designated editor, taking into consideration the peer review results, the scientific quality and contribution of the manuscript, its relevance to the journal's focus and scope, and publication ethics considerations.

All peer review activities are conducted confidentially and professionally. Reviewers must maintain the confidentiality of manuscripts, avoid conflicts of interest, and must not use information obtained from a manuscript for personal or research purposes without permission.

Reviewers must not upload or enter manuscripts, portions of manuscripts, research data, or confidential information from manuscripts under review into generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools or services, as this may compromise the confidentiality and integrity of the peer review process.